Monday, July 15, 2013

Attacking Republicans seems to be the
sport of the day, not only by Democrats, but also within the Republican Party.
Recently, Marco Rubio and Chris Christie were attacked by the right wing of the
GOP for not being conservative enough on their policies about immigration and
other issues. Now add Bob McDonnell to that list.

Conservative bloggers like Willie
Deutsch at Bearing Drift have joined with Democratic bloggers in the
mindless act of becoming participants in attacking the Virginia Republican Governor.
What should be more disconcerting is the effect this circular firing squad will
have on GOP gubernatorial candidate Ken Cuccinelli who has also been caught up
in the controversy with his own issue of unreported gifts from Star Scientific and Jonnie Williams. When the far right is done with
Bob McDonnell, will they then turn their guns on Cuccinelli?

In the words of Richmond Times-Dispatch political writer Jeff Schapiro, "... all Democrats have to do is watch a great Republican tradition: cannibalism."

The hemorrhaging needs to stop.

Interestingly enough, in the
shadows away from this controversy stands Lieutenant Governor Bill Bolling. The
far right had its fair share of attacking him earlier this year by calling him
a RINO and questioning his conservative credentials. In hindsight, perhaps
Bolling did the wisest thing by stepping aside in this toxic environment.
Meanwhile, as Jim Hoeft reported, it's business as usual in the LG's office as he
goes about the job of working for the people of Virginia.

The LG is also on the minds of
the editorial board at Charlottesville's Daily
Progress, wondering what if concerning Bolling's aborted campaign for Governor. Noting the
issues surrounding the Governor, the Daily
Progress wrote:

“Much of this has occurred on
center stage during a summer that was supposed to have belonged to Republican
Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling, a better man who stands in the shadows, cast there by a
party that failed him and failed Virginia.

Undercut by state GOP leaders
whose political IQ’s can only be measured in minuses, Bolling was thrown to the
side by Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, a man with more baggage than
Samsonite.

Rather than hold a primary to
allow voters to select the next Republican candidate for governor, party
string-pullers conducted the rough equivalent of a meeting in a smoke-filled
room, holding a convention to hand Cuccinelli the nomination.

Bolling could have taken his shot
in 2009 — surely, he wishes now that he had — but he agreed to stand aside to
unify the party, paving the path to McDonnell’s sweeping victory. The idea was
that Bolling would wait his turn until 2013.

Then along came Cuccinelli. One
wonders how strongly the capital’s most powerful Republican stood for the
friend who helped him win election. There are apparent prices to be paid for
McDonnell’s friendship. Williams is Exhibit A, evidently.

That has stirred rumblings about
McDonnell’s possible early departure from Richmond. A conservative blogger
claimed over the weekend that two sources told him the governor was preparing
to resign in a plea deal to avoid ethics charges. McDonnell’s staff quickly
denied the rumor.

It’s a sign of how deep the
governor is in his own mess. Were he to be forced out, moving Bolling into the
mansion, Virginia would be served in the interim by a leader superior to the
alternatives being offered up for the fall. Perhaps Bolling might gain fuel
enough for a write-in run.

That might be a dream, but it is
far pleasanter than the nightmare now being lived out in the state’s highest
office.

The loser in all this is the
Republican Party, both statewide and nationally. Maybe we all need
to reconsider the 11th commandment often quoted by Ronald Reagan: Thou shalt not speak ill
of another Republican.